When Resident Evil 7 was released back in 2017, gamers knew it was taking a different approach from its predecessors. It wasn't just that the point of view switch to first person, instead of the typical third person the franchise was known for before RE7 help shape the current horror series. The enemies in the most recent entry into the long-running series featured a story that stood out from the rest because it didn't involve any of the old settings players were used to. It also didn't focus as much on any of the characters Resident Evil fans have gotten to know over the years.
The approach proved to be a big winner for Capcom. By the end of last summer, Resident Evil 7 was the best-selling game in the series. More than that, the game had some gamers openly calling for the next games in the franchise to look and feel like RE7. Even the release of remakes for Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3 didn't deter fans from enjoying Resident Evil 7 and any calls for the next original installment to include the same POV as the last new release.
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The plot and theme of Resident Evil 7 was quite popular as well. It was so popular, in fact, that the screenwriter for the upcoming Resident Evil movie reboot says he based the film, at least in part, on Resident Evil 7. Gamers who have played this series since the beginning are used to guiding characters over, around, and threw hordes of zombies, with a few more mutated undead creatures thrown in for good measure. This time around, the story was much more about a horror mystery that unfolded.
There were still plenty of enemies to try and take down, or run away from, but the feel of the game was just different. The horror aspect has always been a part of Resident Evil games, but it was ramped up quite a bit for the latest release. Resident Evil 7 was a game the franchise's fans had never seen before in the franchise's history, even if some of the mechanics harkened all the way back to the very beginning of the series.
Such a drastic change could have been a disaster to Capcom if it didn't pull off the release just right. Instead, it was indeed a financial windfall for the company and it appears to have inspired a model for how the series is going to look and feel moving into Resident Evil 8 and beyond. Capcom has already shown off a great deal of Resident Evil 8, otherwise known as Resident Evil: Village. Though there are going to be some zombies in the mix, there's also going to be various vampires, werewolves, and plenty of survival horror aspects in the upcoming title.
Capcom is making its new game in the shadow of Resident Evil 7 because of its success and popularity. The company is, in essence, making sure it doesn't mess with success and try and do something like a return to the old formula when there are plenty of people who have enjoyed the new one. Instead, the company is building on what made Resident Evil 7 so popular, including offering more of the same in Resident Evil 8 on a bigger scale.
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